Entrant details
Role or Job Title on the Project
Communications Manager
Employer
Werner Sobek AG
Stuttgart, Germany
Employer Role
Architecture or Engineering Company
Are you or your employer a member of buildingSMART?
Yes - Chapter Member
Submission details
Submitting Party Company Name
Werner Sobek AG
Submitting Party Company Location
Stuttgart, Germany
Submitting Party Role on Project
Partner
Submitting Party Company Website
Full Project Name
DigitalTWIN
Project Location (Country)
Germany
Project Objectives
By 2021, renowned partners from industry and research will develop digital tools and methods further in order to bring together and automated services, processes and workflows along the construction value-creation chain. The challenges for the building industry are the changing responsibilities throughout a building’s lifecycle, different national standards and regulations, and partners that change constantly during planning, construction and operation. The aim is that open platform architecture, more advanced broadband communication systems and computer vision technologies should simplify planning, production and coordination with the building site. Technologies should provide users a reliable, flexible and upgradable communication and management infrastructure.
openBIM Achievements
One main objective is to enhance the utilization of continuous digital processes for users within the building sector and through the entire building life cycle. Key to this is data transfer free of media disruption. Therefore interfaces between project participants have been examined and optimized using open standards.
A common digital platform was created, new 5G technologies are used for fast, low-latency and flexible networking, standardized interfaces and protocols are defined and state-of-the-art visualization and interaction technologies applied.
In various work packages open data standards are investigated, modified and applied, so that flexible, sustainable and collaborative processes can be developed.
openBIM used
IFC 2x3, IFC4, BCF, IDM, MVD
openBIM or open standards used other than those listed above
JSON
BIMSWARM
scaleIT
REST
MQTT
Software used
Rhino, Grasshopper,
Excel
Revit, Dynamo
BIMCollabZoom
HiCAD
Tekla
Visual Studios
XBIMViewer
scaleIT
PTB
Unity
NodeJS
Matlab (bei HHI)
Strategic Alignment
OpenBIM as well as other open standards, open-source-software and open-access-initiatives were essential for the strategic preparation and for the technical realization with dynamically interconnected model data. OpenBIM is among other open standards for IIoT Services and XR Applications the most important one to bring combined IT solutions to an integrated usage in Architecture, Engineering and Construction.
Applications between BIM, XR and IIoT are discussed conceptually in order to define use cases and demonstrate technologies and integrated IT solutions. These solutions use open standards, enhance them under the influence of the other domains and promote exchange and understanding of domain-specific approaches.
Highlights
- Integration of different hardware components currently used (or most likely used in the future), flexible combination of modular software tools, integration of existing workflows and software solutions via open standards and interfaces
- Live analysis, combination and use of dynamically accumulated geometric and parametric data, point clouds and metadata.
- Cluster infrastructure for decentralized but synchronized data management
- Modular user interface for XR devices
- 5G wireless technology for building sites
- 6 finalized demos, 4 additional in preparation
Overview:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ort8d4xxLXA
Facade monitoring:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2e7_JzS1vsU
Assembly support:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LyaPqwkoi54
Communication technology on construction sites:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lD4qP9BIV0
Accessibility checks and continuous documentation of welding works:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHT2v63agbE
3D alignment and 5G wireless technology for remote quality assurance:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKqsj-HNTDg
Project Website
Project Address
se commerce GmbH
Gutenbergstrasse 6
86368 Gersthofen
Project Type
(Other)
Size of Project
6 research partners
12 associated partners (companies, universities)
more than 70 connected associations and initiatives
50 researchers, developers and users involved
3 use cases | 9 demos
4 initiatives to bring BIM standardization to other industries (XR and Industry 4.0)
3 years total project duration
~ 4.5 mio. Euro funding provided by the Federal Government of Germany
Detailed description of the project
The main areas of research at DigitalTWIN are digital platforms and open IT cluster architectures for the construction industry, communication technology for the construction site and its successive expansion, the use of computer vision technologies for quality assurance and for XR devices. The integration of production machines and other enduser devices play a major role in system integration and for future IT system landscapes. The keyword hybrid is important for a flexible and scalable implementation of application-related solutions. Considerations of IT and operational security as well as the protection of know-how complement the project work.
The building life cycle and the different phases of the value chain in the building industry are essential for the application-focused orientation of the research and development project. Characteristic for building projects are changing actors, replanning and reorientation in the course of a project. The developed use cases therefore address the different phases of the building life cycle, show how open and standardized data formats (IFC, BCF, etc.) can be used and further developed, link IT solutions through open, modular and scalable private cloud cluster technologies and thus provide orientation for different users and software developers.
Use Case 1 deals with building operation (it addresses the easy availability and visualisation of live measured data at the building through the digital twin using edge cloud and cluster computing technologies), Use Case 2 with manufacturing and quality assurance (it includes a virtual welding inspection plus all documentation on the shop floor and the construction site in order to reduce the time during which inspectors must be present and achieve a continuous and effective workflow during the production and inspection of welded steel components), and Use Case 3 with assembly and live interaction with construction project's stakeholders and data from the planning and manufacturing phase (it addresses the issue of more effective and efficient installation using the digital tools as well as flexible and safe use in harsh site environments).
Demos have been developed for each Use Case. Short trailers provide a quick immersion in the scenarios, the technologies used and the application of networked digital tools.
Use Case 1: Monitoring in building operation and maintenance support
Demo: Facade monitoring with sensor networks and cloud cluster
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2e7_JzS1vsU
Demo: Computing and bandwidth-intensive services in buildings with 5G radio technology and edge-cloud infrastructure
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKqsj-HNTDg&feature=youtu.be
Use Case 2: Quality assurance in production
Demo: Accessibility check for steel constructions and documentation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHT2v63agbE&t=20s
Use Case 3: Assembly support with AR on the construction site
Demo: Positioning and tolerance adjustment during the assembly of steel components
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LyaPqwkoi54&t=59s
Demo: Information and communication technology on the construction site
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lD4qP9BIV0&t=42s
Demo: Flexible 5G wireless access points on the construction site
Consortium
Interdisciplinary consortium
Planners, manufacturing companies and service providers for the construction industry, but also communications and IT companies, will benefit from this research project. With its global partners, DigitalTWIN will encourage a discussion about the boundary conditions in the different markets and an investigation into how, in the future, the building process in Germany and the structure of the German economy can be used to advantage and expanded in the fiercely contested global IT market.
The consortium is made up of leading service providers and industrial companies from the construction, IT, communication and automation sectors plus leading research establishments.
- se commerce GmbH
- Heinrich Hertz Institute of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V.
- Telegärtner Karl Gärtner GmbH
- Carl Zeiss 3D Automation GmbH
- planen-bauen 4.0 – Gesellschaft zur Digitalisierung des Planens, Bauens und Betreibens mbH
- Werner Sobek AG
Associate partners
- ISD
- Schindler
- Hochschule für Technik Stuttgart
- Diota GmbH
- seele GmbH
- Hochschule Albstadt-Sigmaringen
- Wilhelm Geiger GmbH & Co. KG
- Hochschule Augsburg
Detailed description of openBIM on the project
The optimization of the interfaces between different planning participants is the essential challenge in modern digital workflows. Using the example of the interface between architectural planner and manufacturer, 2 basic main requirements for data exchange are crystallized.
On the one hand, there are repetitive multilateral revisions to the models which have to be transferred, checked and implemented and, on the other hand, the fact that very different highly specialized software is used by all parties involved. Especially the software with a high variance of functions and requirements often made a unbroken data exchange almost impossible. Therefore, the goal of the involved research parties is to develop a workflow which is formulated in a way that it is universally valid and can be used as a basis for different interfaces, users and projects based on openBIM standards.
Refelcting the currently daily project buisiness within the building sector it became obvious that (espespially in Germany) we a confronted with an industry that is structured in countless small companies and disciplines, leading to several possible data gaps.
As a result, identical work steps in planning are often done unnecessarily several times by different parties involved. This becomes particularly clear in the example of facade planning.
Manufacturing or construction companies often set up their planning completely new, because the underlying planning documents are available in formats that often cannot be processed sufficiently or technical highly detailed system products require a new modelling.
Figure 1: https://cloud.wernersobek.com/s/tszM6enzjxqwX3c
In the simplified figure above, the current workflow is shown as a schema. Often IFC files are used as transfer format when using 3D models. Unfavorably, even native architectural models (Revit, ArchiCAD, ...), which may not even be opened for review, are used. IFC models can be read in most software solutions, but the geometries they contain cannot be used for further processing and can only be used as reference. This creates an interface between planning and production, which results in the fact that the manufacturer has a reference model to orientate himself by, but he has to rebuild his own model as a basis for his planning.
For the first test a simple steel framework was the basis for the interdisciplinary model exchange.
Figure 2: https://cloud.wernersobek.com/s/5mQzfHFC4qkf7pB
Figure 3: https://cloud.wernersobek.com/s/boa8JteGZcfWdqe
The basic model was created by using Rhino, the axes and surfaces were transferred and assigned with corresponding components (Revit family types) succesfully to Revit directly via Dynamo-Plugin and alternatively via Grashopper Plugin using the IFC 2x3 and 4 format .
In order to simulate different workflows, the geometry was transferred from Revit- IFC - Tekla and Revit - IFC- HiCAD. Each export with specific planning to production model view definitions. Special attention was to be paid to the loss of geometry data, parametrics and attributes and it was to be tested how IFC mapping (assignment of native component categories to IFC categories) influences the transfer. The IFC format used was ifc2x3, which is currently supported by all software packages used.
As summarized result it was not possible to transfer geometric parametrics, a correct IFC mapping is mandatory, the modeling in Revit should be done in the correct component categories to avoid a complete loss of geometries and the transfer of information attributes is almost without problems. Thus the profiles per se are transferable into the following software, but the editability is lost, which is an essential media break.
In order to verify these results, different other tests were carried out with varying element types. The test provided the same results in general, with that insight the workflow has been improved significantly.
Based on the results of the first test series, it has become clear that the transmission of complex geometries via IFC for further processing is not practical or is subject to very strong restrictions.
In order to keep the working groups target of optimizing the interface between planner and manufacturer in focus, the planning processes were analyzed again to identify other transfer points and to simplify workflows through new methods and approaches.
In this context, it has been agreed to start a second test phase with the result to solve the technical interface between planner and manufacturer with the basic geometry model as reference.
For the advanced workflow, this means that after completion of the architectural planning, the basic model and the logic for building the model are transferred to the manufacturer and the IFC is also published as a handover reference file.
Figure 4: https://cloud.wernersobek.com/s/bkCrQLGC3Bk8iRN
The basic model is always constructed in the same way, i.e. from nodes, axes and surfaces; a control for the logic structure is created. Due to the highly simplified model, the logic behind it can also be described with relatively few rules. It should be noted that the more complex the geometry, the more complex the logic becomes, but the rules for creating the logic remain manageable.
All elements in the basic model are being tagged with unique ID’s and are being placed into shared project coordi-nate system. The Element ID’s, and their position within the coordinate system are being exported into an excel sheet and uploaded into an open cloud. Every project participant has access to the cloud and is able to read the very simplified geometrical information.
With the basic geometric model in the form of a database, on the one hand as the basis for modelling, and the architecturally advanced IFC handover reference model, a bidirectional gap-free workflow is possible.
Benefits from using openBIM
The target of the research project is to develop digital tools and methods in order to bring together and automate services, processes and procedures along the construction value chain, open standards are the key to success. With very different project partners from various sectors of the building and construction industry the digital planning of demos and use cases, processes and communication had to be based on a mutually agreed collaboration infrastructure. Standards like IDM, IFC and BCF where the basis for that infrastructure since every project participant had a general understanding of how to use them. In addition the partners are using a variety of different software and tools, on whose interfaces openBIM standards crucially influenced the ability to guarantee a continuous exchange of information.
"We were able to innovate using openBIM."
It is a major misunderstanding that IFC is a multidirectional exchange format in the planning and construction industry. Tests proved that the format itself as well as the native software interpreting the IFC simply lack of capabilities of delivering that kind of function. Each Software API – their core – is different from another, providers are updating their tools and systems yearly and the amount of used software, tools and plugins in the industry is countless. All this makes it barely possible for the IFC format to transmit “live” editable information.
Understanding this is crucial in order to innovate the workflows between different project partners. One solution could be working in a closed BIM world, with the benefit of using same file formats and machine languages, the disadvantage of being dependent on one single software provider and massively limiting modelling, attributing, coordination and communication abilities come along. ClosedBIM has its field of application but most projects will at some point require open standards.
Instead of using the most sophisticated and developed models from each project participant, a step back brought the success in interdisciplinary collaboration. Using a mutually agreed basic model with straightfor-ward geometrical elements and ID’s as interface exchange basis, leads to the fact that all project members are able to interpret elements correctly and develop discipline oriented model matching their scope of work.
With the open database as central part, including information about position, ID and type of element the basis for further development a key element is creating that allows multilateral and constantly document information in and output.
This process is complemented by IFC handover files as reference, orientation and comparison model and an element and process based ticketing system for issues.
"We were able to identify where we need openBIM to develop further."
In the course of the project, it became apparent, that due to the complexity and high requirements of the models which should be exchanged, difficulties with existing solutions appear. This revealed the disad-vantage that for complex three-dimensional geometries, plug-ins for import and export must often be used. Furthermore, the transfer of parametrics proved to be difficult or even impossible. This often results in complex remodeling process, which is also error-prone and cannot be transferred to a generalized workflow. The solution developed in the project provides for an exchange of trivial geometry information and the subsequent automated reconstruction to a complex geometry. The basic model is always constructed in the same way from nodes, axes and surfaces; in addition a control for the logic structure is created. Due to the highly simplified model, the logic behind it can also be described with relatively few rules. It should be noted that the more complex the geometry becomes, the more complex the logic becomes, but the rules for creating the logic remain manageable.
Open file formats were chosen for the exchange, but the data structure within the file format was already implemented for a functional prototype, but has not yet been described in a standard. The pending work and thus the transfer of the Proprietary Solution to openBIM could lead to further development and wider distribution of the standard. It has been shown that the developed solution is particularly well suited for truss structures, but in the future it is intended to develop it further using the possibilities of openBIM and thus to be able to use it for a variety different support structures.
Figure 1 (Standardization process): https://cloud.wernersobek.com/s/fLqbMZXQ5pWRCJZ
BIM Uses were defined on the project
Stakeholders
Werner Sobek AG, Stuttgart, Germany,
https://www.wernersobek.com, Partner, Eric Wolgast
se commerce GmbH, Gersthofen, Germany,
https://seele.com/de/standorte/se-commerce-gmbh-de, Lead partner, Dr. Fabian Schmid
Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications, Heinricht Hertz Institute (HHI), Berlin, Germany,
https://www.hhi.fraunhofer.de/en.html, Partner, Dr. Ralf Schäfer
Telegärtner Karl Gärtner GmbH, Steinenbronn, Germany,
https://www.telegaertner.com/en/, Partner, Felix Klein
Carl Zeiss 3D Automation GmbH, Aalen, Germany,
https://www.zeiss.de/messtechnik/home.html, Partner, Dr. Arnd Menschig
planen-bauen 4.0 – Gesellschaft zur Digitalisierung des Planens, Bauens und Betreibens mbH, Berlin, Germany,
https://planen-bauen40.de/, Partner, Eike Tauscher
